37 more buses being put into service for Halifax schools

Children get onto a Stock Transportation bus at a bus stop in Tantallon on Sept. 7, 2011. - Eric Wynne

The former chair of the now defunct Halifax Regional School Board was never entirely surprised by the municipality-wide outcry over widespread school busing shortfalls.

Nor was Gin Yee especially surprised by the province’s announcement on Thursday to spend $2 million to fund up to 37 more school buses in an attempt to improve service in the Halifax area.

“Certainly, the Halifax Regional School Board did lobby the Department of Education about busing but they came through today,”said Yee, who on the same day was publicly named to a 12-member provincial advisory council on education.

“I was a school board member since 2004 and this became a pattern at the beginning of every school year, increasing complaints about busing service, whether it had to so with scheduling issues or concerns about courtesy stops.”

According to a Department of Education news release, the advisory council will provide advice directly to the minister of education. It also said the department would immediately seek advice from the council regarding student transportation.

While he says the school busing service is in need of more funding he also admits money is not the only solution.

“We need to be creative in our approach to busing so we can allocate as much as we can on education, that’s my preference. I have to concede to solve the problem it needs more money. It’s happening but the question is, is it enough?

“I think everything should be on the table, how to do busing provincewide and I’m looking forward to the discussion.”

On Thursday, Education Minister Zach Churchill said the current provincewide review of school busing operations would include consultation with several stakeholders besides the provincial advisory council, including parents and school principals. Before Thursday, Churchill had given no indication that the review, which is expected to produce a new busing policy, would include public consultation.

Public consultation will include an online survey that will be available in October. Feedback will be used for a new set of busing service standards for September, including busing cut-off distances, said the department.

“Parents have a right to expect safe, reliable bus service for their children,” said Churchill in a statement release by the department Thursday. “We heard from many parents about issues with busing this year, along with challenges that persist year over year.”

Pamela Menchenton, a spokeswoman with the Department of Education, said the province decided on 37 buses after looking at the extra number of vehicles being used to meet the current demand of students as well as new busing requests and “chronic lateness issues in some areas.”

Menchenton said the department hasn’t decided whether the public surveys will allow for written comments.

As part of the review, the department’s deputy minister is expected to hold regular update meetings with Stock Transportation, the company that provides bus service, and the Halifax Regional Centre for Education.

All three groups have faced a barrage of criticism from parents, including inadequate access to busing, scheduling delays and constantly changing routes.

Hammonds Plains resident Pamela Lovelace said the funding should have come earlier. This year she fought to get busing for her daughter, a Grade 8 student at Madeline Symonds Middle School. For the past three years her daughter had been bused but was sent home with a letter from Stock Transportation on Tuesday saying she was no longer eligible.

She said the decision was reversed on Wednesday after she complained to the Halifax Regional Centre for Education.

Lovelace believes Thursday’s announcement is an acknowledgement by the department that it failed in its responsibility to ensure safe and reliable student transportation.

“The whole things is so irresponsible, and there’s no accountability,” said Lovelace. “The Department of Education has a contract with Stock Transportation and Stock hasn’t fulfilled their obligations within that contract but yet there’s no means to hold them accountable so we’re stuck with them even though they’re providing an incredibly low standard of service.”